Single hand operated sprayer

ABSTRACT

A single hand operated sprayer comprising a body including a neck touched by the palm of a user&#39;&#39;s hand and a head provided with a hollow cylinder, said cylinder being fitted with a nozzle at that end which faces the user; and a lever gripped by the user&#39;&#39;s fingers to cause a piston to slide through the cylinder wherein, when the lever is pulled toward the user the liquid contained in the sprayer is ejected from the nozzle toward the user.

United States Patent Tada 1 SINGLE HAND OPERATED SPRAYER [76] Inventor: Tetsuya Tada, 2-6, 3-chome, Nishi Nakanobu, Shinagawaku, Tokyo, Japan [22] Filed: Nov. 21, 1972 211 App]. No.: 308,523

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Dec. 7, 1971 Japan 46/98863 [52] US. Cl 239/349, 239/350, 239/360, 239/375, 239/464, 239/497, 239/571, 222/385 [51] Int. Cl Bosh 11/00, BOSb 1/34 [58] Field of Search ..239/525528, 530,463, 23 14. 4? 3191;.1633-51 1 3 .5 491 494, 354,

.. Milt 249 341 3.213

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,627,206 12/1971 Boris 239/349 X I ill] [ Nov. 6, 1973 Vanier 239/571 X FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 678,747 1/1964 Canada 239/361 Primary ExaminerRobert S. Ward, Jr. Attorney-George B. O ujevolk [57] ABSTRACT A single hand operated sprayer comprising a body in- 9 Claims, 1 Drawing Figure SINGLE HAND OPERATED SPRAYER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a single hand operated sprayer for ejecting, for example, a hair lotion or perfume in atomized form.

The prior art sprayer is so adapted as to eject the liquid contained therein in the opposite direction to the user when the lever is actuated, presenting great inconvenience where the user desires to have the liquid thrown on himself.

It is accordingly the object of this invention to provide a sprayer enabling the user to have the liquid contained therein ejected on himself.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A sprayer according to this invention comprises a body including a neck touched by the palm of a users hand and a head provided with a cylinder which has a nozzle attached to the end facing the user; a piston slidably inserted into the cylinder through an opening at the opposite end; and a lever actuated by the users fingers to cause the piston to slide through the cylinder, wherein, when the user pulls the lever to himself, the liquid contained in the spray is ejected on himself through the nozzle due to the piston moving inward of the cylinder.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING This invention can be more fully understood from the following detailed description when taken in connection with reference to the accompanying drawing which presents a longitudinal sectional view of the single hand operated sprayer of this invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to the drawing, numeral 1 shows the body of a sprayer which includes a head 2 provided with a hollow cylinder 3 and a truncated cone-shaped neck 4 touched by thepalm of a users hand. To the bottom end of the neck 4 is connected a spray liquid container 5.

That end of the cylinder 3 which faces the user is fitted with a nozzle 6, which communicates with a flared jet port 7 disposed adjacent thereto. The opposite end of the cylinder 3 is fully open. There is firmly inserted in the cylinder 3 an abutting member 8 dividing the cylinder into two parts. One of them is a larger compartment 9 formed between the inner end of the piston and the outer end of the member 8. The other is a smaller compartment 12 defined between the bottom 11 of the cylinder and the inner end of the member 8. The abutting member has a penetrating passage connecting the compartment 9 to the other compartment 12 and narrowed adjacent the larger compartment 9. In the smaller compartment 12 there is slidably received a spinner 13 for atomizing the liquid. The spinner 13 has grooves formed in the peripheral surface and a recess at the front end so as to cause the liquid to pass from the cylinder 3 to the jet port 7 even when the spinner ner 13 not only serves the object of atomizing the liquid, but also acts as a check valve.

The piston 14 is slidably inserted into the cylinder 3 at its open end. The piston 14 consists of a sliding portion 15 perforated with a penetrating hole 16 and an abutting portion 17 firmly fitted into said penetrating hole 16. From the periphery of the sliding portion 15 of the piston 14 projects an elastic edge portion 18 which slides over the inner wall of the cylinder 3 in a liquid tight condition. From the inner end of the abutting portion 17 of the cylinder 3 projects into the penetrating passage 10 of the abutting member 9 a rod 19 having the furthest end made thicker than the other portion. The thick end of the rod 19 constitutes a piston valve, which, when the piston 14 is positioned in the outermost part of the cylinder 3, abuts against the peripheral wall of the narrow section of the penetrating passage 10 of the abutting member 9, thereby preventing the liquid held in the cylinder 3 from leaking outside through the nozzle 6. The outer end of the abutting portion 17 is made conical.

In the inner end face of the sliding portion 15 and in the outer end face of the abutting member 9 there are formed annular grooves 20 and 21 respectively, into which there are fitted both end portions of a compression spring 22 for normally urging the piston 14 toward the outer end of the cylinder 3.

To the head 2 is rotatably attached by a pivotal shaft 24 a lever 23 for moving the piston inward of the cylinder 3. On that side of the lever 23 which faces the piston 14 is formed a notch 25, into which there is fitted the conical end of the abutting portion 17.

At the bottom of the frustum-shaped neck 4 is provided a cavity 26 whose inner wall is tapered. A hole 28 bored in the lateral side of the cylinder 3 causes the cavity 26 to communicate with the cylinder 3. In the cavity 26 is received a frustum-shaped insert member 29 having a saw-toothed projection 30 formed on the upper outer periphery. Said saw-toothed projection 30 frictionally abuts against the inner wall 27 of the cavity 26 to render said cavity 26 liquid-tight. On the interme- 13 abuts on the bottom 11 of the cylinder 3. The liquid diate outer periphery of the insert member 29 is provided an annular projection 31, which fits into an annular groove 32 formed in the inner wall 27 of the cavity 26 so as to fix the insert member 29 in the neck portion 4 of the spray body 1. The lower part of the sawtoothed projection 30 extends downward from the bottom end of the neck portion 4. The lowermost end of the insert member 29 has a flange formed on the outer periphery.

The upper portion of the spray liquid container 5 is formed into an upward projecting tubular protrusion 34, the upper end of which abuts against the bottom end of the insert member 29. On the outer periphery of said protrusion 34is provided a male screw 35. The lower part of the insert member 29 and the outer periphery of the protrusion 34 are surrounded with a tightening ring 36, which is provided at the upper end with an inward projecting flange 37 and on the inner wall with a female screw 38. The flange 37 of the tightening ring 36 engages the flange 33 of the insert member 29, so that rotation of the ring 36 permits the tight abutment of the insert member 29 against the tubular protrusion 34 of the spray liquid container Sand in consequence the fixing of the neck 4 of the spray body 1 to the container 5.

.The insert member 29 is providedat the top with a small cavity 39 and at the bottom with a large cavity 40. From the bottom of the large cavity 40 extends downward a projection 41, which is penetrated by a hole 42 communicating with the small cavity 39. Into said hole 42 is tightly inserted a pipe 43 extending downward into the spray liquid container 5. The above-mentioned hole 28, small cavity 39, hole 42 and pipe 43 jointly constitute a passageway for conducting the spray liquid into the cylinder 3. In the small cavity 39 is disposed a first check valve 44 for permitting the flow of the spray liquid only from the passageway to the cylinder 3.

The neck 4 is bored with a hole 45 for causing the cavity 26 to communicate with the open air. The insert member 29 is perforated with a hole 46 for connecting the cavity 26 with the large cavity 40. In said large cavity 40 is provided a second check valve 47 having an M-shaped cross section which consists of a central tubular portion tightly engaging the projection 41 and a thin outer conical portion elastically abutting against the inner wall of said cavity 40. When the spray liquid container 5 has a negative pressure, air is conducted thereinto through the hole 45, cavity 26, hole 40 and an interspace between the inner wall of the cavity 40 and the conical portion of the second check valve 47. At this time, however, the liquid in the spray container 5 is obstructed by the check valve 47 and does not leak outside.

There will now be described the operation of the sprayer of this invention. When the palm of a users hand touches the neck portion 4 and his fingers grip the lever 23, the nozzle 6 and jet port 7 face the user. When the lever 23 is pulled in the direction of the indicated arrow, namely, toward the user, the piston 14 advances into the cylinder 3 to eject the spray liquid from the nozzle 6. At this time, the spinner 3 is pressed against the bottom 11 of the cylinder 3 by the pressure of the liquid and the valve 44 remains closed. When the lever 23 is relieved of a force applied thereto, the piston 14 slides outward of the cylinder 3 by means of the spring 22. As the result, the spinner 13 is pressed against the end of the abutting member 9 by a negative pressure prevailing in the cylinder ,3, and the spray liquid is sucked into the cylinder 3 through the valve 44 and hole 28.

What is claimed is:

1. A single hand operated sprayer comprising a body including a neck touched by the palm of a users hand and a head provided with a hollow cylinder, said cylinder being opened at one end and fitted with a nozzle at the other end facing the user; a first passageway for conducting spray liquid into the cylinder; a first check valve for permitting the flow of spray liquid only from the passageway to the cylinder; a piston slidably inserted into the cylinder from said open end; means for urging the piston outward of the cylinder; a lever rockably. supported on the spray body and, when gripped by users fingers, pulled toward the user to move the piston inward of the cylinder; and a spinner for causing spray liquid to be atomized and ejected through the nozzle upon inward movement of the piston.

2. The sprayer according to claim 1, further comprising an abutting member firmly-inserted in the cylinder to divide the cylinder into two parts one of which is a compartment defined between the inner end of the abutting member and said other end of the cylinder, said abutting member having a penetrating passage connecting said compartment with the other part of the cylinder, said compartment containing therein said spinner to be pressed onto said inner end of the abutting member to shut fluid communication between the cylinder and the nozzle when the piston is moved outward of the cylinder.

3. The sprayer according to claim 2 wherein said piston has a piston valve extending from the inner end of the piston into the penetrating passage, the extending end of said piston valve being engaged with the inner peripheral wall of the penetrating passage to prevent spray liquid from leaking through the nozzle when the piston is urged in the outermost position.

4. The sprayer according to claim 2 wherein the urging means consists of a compression spring arranged between the inner end of the piston and the outer end of the abutting member.

5. The sprayer according to claim 1, further comprising a container for holding spray liquid to be fed to said first passageway and means for connecting the container to the neck of the body.

6. The sprayer according to claim 5 wherein said connecting means includes a first cavity formed at the bottom of the neck, an insert member firmly fitted into said first cavity with the lower part thereof projecting downward of the neck, a tubular connecting protrusion projecting upward from the top of the container with the upper end thereof pressed against the underside of the insert member, and a tightening ring surrounding the connecting protrusion and said lower part of the insert member to securely fix them in place.

7. The sprayer according to claim 6 wherein said insert member has a saw toothed projection formed on the outer periphery, said projection tightly pressed against the inner wall of the first cavity in a liquidtight condition.

8. The sprayer according to claim 6, further comprising means for preventing negative pressure within the container.

9. The sprayer according to claim 8 wherein said means for preventing negative pressure includes a second cavity formed at the bottom of the insert member, a first vent port perforated in the insert member to connect the second cavity to the first cavity, a second vent port made in the neck to provide air communication between atmosphere and the second cavity through the first vent port, and a second check valve held in the second cavity to permit the air flow only through the second vent port into the second cavity.

' III I! t 4 4K 

1. A single hand operated sprayer comprising a body including a neck touched by the palm of a user''s hand and a head provided with a hollow cylinder, said cylinder being opened at one end and fitted with a nozzle at the other end facing the user; a first passageway for conducting spray liquid into the cylinder; a first check valve for permitting the flow of spray liquid only from the passageway to the cylinder; a piston slidably inserted into the cylinder from said open end; means for urging the piston outward of the cylinder; a lever rockably supported on the spray body and, when gripped by user''s fingers, pulled toward the user to move the piston inward of the cylinder; and a spinner for causing spray liquid to be atomized and ejected through the nozzle upon inward movement of the piston.
 2. The sprayer according to claim 1, further comprising an abutting member firmly inserted in the cylinder to divide the cylinder into two parts one of which is a compartment defined between the inner end of the abutting member and said other end of the cylinder, said abutting member having a penetrating passage connecting said compartment with the other part of the cylinder, said compartment containing therein said spinner to be pressed onto said inner end of the abutting member to shut fluid communication between the cylinder and the nozzle when the piston is moved outward of the cylinder.
 3. The sprayer according to claim 2 wherein said piston has a piston valve extending from the inner end of the piston into the penetrating passage, the extending end of said piston valve being engaged with the inner peripheral wall of the penetrating passage to prevent spray liquid from leaking through the nozzle when the piston is urged in the outermost position.
 4. The sprayer according to claim 2 wherein the urging means consists of a compression spring arranged between the inner end of the piston and the outer end of the abutting member.
 5. The sprayer according to claim 1, further comprising a contaiNer for holding spray liquid to be fed to said first passageway and means for connecting the container to the neck of the body.
 6. The sprayer according to claim 5 wherein said connecting means includes a first cavity formed at the bottom of the neck, an insert member firmly fitted into said first cavity with the lower part thereof projecting downward of the neck, a tubular connecting protrusion projecting upward from the top of the container with the upper end thereof pressed against the underside of the insert member, and a tightening ring surrounding the connecting protrusion and said lower part of the insert member to securely fix them in place.
 7. The sprayer according to claim 6 wherein said insert member has a saw toothed projection formed on the outer periphery, said projection tightly pressed against the inner wall of the first cavity in a liquidtight condition.
 8. The sprayer according to claim 6, further comprising means for preventing negative pressure within the container.
 9. The sprayer according to claim 8 wherein said means for preventing negative pressure includes a second cavity formed at the bottom of the insert member, a first vent port perforated in the insert member to connect the second cavity to the first cavity, a second vent port made in the neck to provide air communication between atmosphere and the second cavity through the first vent port, and a second check valve held in the second cavity to permit the air flow only through the second vent port into the second cavity. 